Moving and won't have locals by antenna

Channels DVR Server
#1

I have happily used Channels DVR for several years and more importantly, my wife is very comfortable with it. We had been using an antenna for locals, Philo, and some of the free services via Docker. It has all worked very well. We also sometimes can use YouTubeTV as a source, but that has been hit or miss because we are out of the area and MFA issues. We have moved and been using things remotely but now I've relocated the server to the new place. We will not be able to get the 4 basic networks via antenna, so this whole thing is going to not work now unless I can find a source for the local networks into Channels DVR.

Is it still possible to do this with Cable TV? We have Spectrum as our only internet provider, but my understanding is that TV Everywhere doesn't support local networks, and we definitely watch things on the local networks. If we can't get them any way, possibly we could watch the local network programing on some of their over the top services like Paramount?

I really hate YoutubeTV as a standalone streaming service as I don't like the slowness of the Guide and the organization of recordings. I am going to try out Fubo. But we won't have a source for locals into Channels so would need to be OK with their streaming service.

Has anyone gone through this. My wife doesn't deal with change well and she has really gotten comfortable with Channels and likes things simple. Looking for a new strategy here to keep Channels as our main TV interface and need a creative combination of things. (I'm less concerned about cost and more about experience right now.)

#2

It does, actually, but it's labeled as an experimental feature and needs to be explicitly enabled.
It's on the settings screen of the server, at the bottom of the page.

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#3

I used Spectrum in SoCal, and received ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC via TVE. Also, if you are using cable, you can get a Prime and CableCARD to receive cable channels as well. (Depending on the market, none or all or any number in between may be DRM, but the locals will all be free of DRM.)

(Philo does not give locals via TVE, but many other providers do, and most if not all cable providers do.)

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#4

You might be able to get them under tve but are you sure you are out of ota range? I say that because at my last house i was sure i was too far. I hired a professional and he installed a roof mount antenna and tuned it perfectly. I went from no signal strength to every channel in the 90% range.

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#6

We moved recently and lost access to a few (not all) locals as a result as well. I use FuboTV as a TVE source and am able to also pickup some locals using Fubo and the Local Networks via TVE feature.

IIRC, you can use FuboTV's website to see what locals are available in your new location.

#7

You can always try Hulu Live too. I got all 4 of my local channels with it as well. No sub channels though. But that has been a consistent theme for any TVE provider.

#8

I am currently with Spectrum and I utilize a HDHR-Prime with CableCard. In my Spectrum service area (Northeast Wisconsin) I am SOL when it comes to getting "cable" channels as they are all DRM. However, I do get all the local channels and most of their sub-channels. So that is a route you may be able to take provided Spectrum continues to support CableCard. Spectrum's TVE service for me has been spectacular and it also carries my Locals with ChannelsDVR's Experimental Local Networks option enabled.

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#9

Are any CATV providers still rebroadcasting locals with ClearQAM? Have you tried hooking your OTA HDHR to the cable and doing a channel scan? (I think the OTA HDHRs have a “cable” setting for ClearQAM reception).

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#10

FWIW I'm getting one local ABC channel (6001) from Philo (TVE).

TVE-Philo
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#11

Do you know if that works with the streaming services like YoutubeTV, Fubo, and Hulu Live?

#13

I queried the local community and several people using antennas responded and no one was getting all 4 of the main networks. Also, on TVFool's map it doesn't show that they are all available, and a couple are very far out.

#14

Yes, it does work with FuboTV. You'll have to check your area to see which channels are available there though. For example, where I am ABC is not, but Fox, NBC, and CBS are. This works out well for me because I cannot get CBS at all OTA and Fox OTA is spotty at best.

#15

I have some history of lots of frustration with cable cards in Tivo days, so not sure I want to go back to that. Also, one of the challenges in our new house is we don't have much space to set this stuff up and the Prime, and Tuning Adapters would add a lot more stuff. We've had 2 quad HomeRuns to avoid contention in recordings and Live TV.

#16

Thanks, I will definitely give this a try.

#17

Have a family member or friend in an area that does receive them, and would be OK with you parking a server there? Maybe if you give them access to the DVR as well, they would be cool with it living at their place? This is what I do.

#18

When I moved I switched to Hulu live and I can get all 4 major channels using the local TVE option but the local Fox channel is spotty. It only broadcasts major FOX programs over TVE. It really depends upon where you are located and what the local stations stream.

#19

I could not pick up any network stations with a large, outdoor antenna but after they started broadcasting in atsc 3.0 I get all of them with excellent signal strength with a small $40 antenna in the attic.

The new format has a very long range.

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#20

I have signed up for Hulu and using their DVR for now. I like it much better than YTTV. Testing on the wife acceptance factor. I will need to set Channels DVR back up and see what I can get. I know the TVE coverage with Hulu isn't great, but we will see. The one are that Hulu Live is way worse on is what you get out of the house. With YTTV, you can watch at another house as long are you log in at home periodically. Hulu doesn't allow watching remote at all with a streaming box. You can watch with your phone and screen share, but that is kind of a pain. We are selling our main home to move into our beach house, so we won't have a second home anymore and this need will go away. Channels works great with a 2nd house.

#21

That's a great idea but I don't have the time to deal with it right now and my setup takes up a lot of space - Mac Mini, 3 x external drives, 2 x HDHR, and the antenna. Add in a UPS and its just a lot to ask someone to run with. I will have some discussions with my son in laws and see if they are interested in it. They are more streaming minded.

#22

Hook up a TV or an HDHR to the Spectrum cable that you have feeding the cable modem and run a channel scan and see what you get. You might find that the channels are there and available unencrypted already. If they are there you would not need to have a CableCard to get the channels. There would be an expectation that you call Spectrum and order basic cable.

On another note, are you trying to watch prime time shows, news, or other? If it is just prime time shows then you can get most of those via streaming but may be delayed by a day to a week. With Channels you can leverage the relationship between Channels and PlayOn Cloud to record the shows and automatically download to your DVR and present as a standard show. This will cost you a little bit per show, about $0.10 each, but if you compare that to having to pay for basic cable it is probably cheaper. Also most prime time shows are available via streaming between Paramount+ for CBS, Hulu for ABC and NBC, Peacock for NBC and others. Most shows again are delayed a day or longer.

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